When Alan Wake’s American Nightmare hits Xbox Live Arcade later this month as part of Microsoft’s Xbox Live House Party, you won’t be visiting the same old woodsy locations. Rather, the folks at Remedy have taken everyone’s favorite darkness fighting author and put him into a haunted desert location. Check out these new screen shots to see check out some of the game’s new locations, weapons and enemies.

A new report on Inside Mobile Apps reports that Microsoft may be looking to phase out its Microsoft Point system that it has used since the inception of the Xbox Live Marketplace in favor of real world money, a move that would effect not only Xbox Live, but the Zune Marketplace, and Windows Phone users as well.

Citing memos sent to company partners, the site claims that Microsoft has reportedly been warning said partners to get ready for the change by the end of 2012. Given the recent rash of Xbox Live Point thefts and phishing scams, one has to wonder whether security is a main reason for the possible change.

Lashing out in response to sharing service Megaupload being taken offline and its founder jailed, hacking activist group Anonymous took down websites for Universal Music and CBS.com. One rumor suggests that Xbox.com and Xbox Live could be next.

The group sent out a video earlier this week claiming that if the MegaUpload services were not restored within 72-hours, they would begin targeting such sites as Capital One, The United Nations, Twitter, Facebook and Youtube. There are rumors that the video was merely an empty threat posted by either smaller members of the organization or someone not even affiliated with them.

This wouldn’t be the first time that Anonymous allegedly took down a gaming service. Though they denied any involvement, the group was credited with taking down the PlayStation Network, taking the service offline for 23-days in response to Sony taking legal action against a hacker who “jailbroke” his PS3 system.

It’s unclear whether the Xbox Network is a verified target of the group, or which of the services would be effected.

If a new posting on Xbox.com is to be believed, the newly announced Resident Evil 6 may be amping up its online suite to feature six player online co-op.

The listing, for whatever its worth also features a wrong release date (the game is confirmed to release on November 20 of this year) says that the game will feature 1-2 player offline co-op and 2-6 player online co-op. This wouldn’t be the first time the series would feature online co-op — the last game in the main series, Resident Evil 5 featured two player co-op while the upcoming Resident Evil: Raccoon City will feature four player co-op.

No word on whether the six player co-op will be story based or a new cooperative mode. We’ve reached out to Capcom for comment and will update this page if we hear back.

My dad loves football, but he finds football video games too complicated. I can’t really blame him either; I’ve tried to get him into Madden, but when you really break the 800 LB gorilla of a gaming franchise down, it’s tough to explain; even if it is second nature when playing. That’s exactly why NFL Blitz works so well — it’s America’s favorite game (Yeah, that’s right, I said it baseball) boiled down to its most basic elements.

Now, after years of being absent, the arcade style footballer returns; in all of its glory — well, sort of. It’s still just as frantic and fun as you remember, but it also comes during a turbulent time in the NFL, once that changes the very landscape and identity of what NFL Blitz is. Still, if you have even the slightest love for NFL Football, Blitz is a blast, especially played with friends.

If you’ve never played NFL Blitz, it’s basically a suped up version of Madden. The players are bigger and ripped with muscles and the plays more explosive. The game nixes strategy and philosophy for over-the-top action and adrenaline. In Blitz, there are no penalties, teams can catch on fire and it takes 30 yards for a first down rather than the standard ten yards.

The action in Blitz is fast, fun and in-your-face. It’s not uncommon to have score upwards of 30 points in the first quarter, and you’re bound to jump off your feet at least a few times. This is where Blitz excels, there’s never really a dull moment, and it gets even better when you’re playing against friends. This is the type of game that friendships are tested on, as it’s extremely fun to play against your friends in Blitz. Think throwing the game winning hail mary in Madden is fun? Imagine the thrill of doing it in Blitz, complete with players on fire and jumping clean over their opponents.

The most impressive aspect of Blitz is how much it retains the original arcade feel. Games are quick and easy for anyone to jump in and pick up and play. Perhaps more impressive, they’re also just as easy for anyone to win. It’s this accessibility that seems to be missing from most other current gen sports games. Blitz even features the old school Midway style codes to be entered at the versus screen for effects like different stadiums, characters and effects.

This isn’t however, the NFL Blitz of old, not completely anyways. The NFL is a much different league than we saw when the last entry in the series was released and that’s something that Blitz both falls victim to and benefits from at the same time. This season, the NFL has been tougher on late hits, and as a result, you won’t be able to stop your opponent’s touchdown celebration with a late, bone jarring hit. Sure, the hits in Blitz are ferocious enough, (come on, I delivered a piledriver to a Quarterback during a sack) but the late hits were a big part of the original games.

Aside from the Play Now option, you’re bound to get the majority of playtime from the game’s Blitz Gauntlet mode. Similar to modes found in games like NBA Jam and Mortal Kombat, you’ll face off with teams in a ladder format, with bosses mixed in. These bosses range from fictional characters (zombies) to team inspired creations (my Packers for instance had to face off with guys in overalls, Packer Jerseys and cheeseheads). These boss battles also feature powerups spread throughout the field, which makes them feel different than your standard games. There’s also a trading card game similar to that found in Madden, but I didn’t like it there and I don’t here either.

Tim Kitzrow from the original Blitz and NBA Jam games makes his return, and is just as entertaining as ever. Him and his announcing partner openly mock pop culture, including games, which includes Blitz. My favorite was when the two said that next year they’re going to audition for Madden because it pays more. Visually, NFL Blitz is on par with what you’d expect, though I was a bit disappointed at the lack of detail in some of the player’s faces. Sure, sometimes Aaron Rodgers looks like himself in the game, but others he just looks like another nameless, faceless NFL Quarterback.

The Blast Factor:NFL Blitz proves that arcade style sports gaming still has a place in modern gaming. It’s a blast to play, especially with other human players, and its accessibility makes it easy for just about anyone to jump in and play. . If you’ve got even the most slightest affinity for the sport or multiplayer gaming — you owe it to yourself to check out this modern day revival.

The jury is still out on the new Xbox 360 dashboard. Some love it, others hate it. Me, I don’t mind it. You know who doesn’t like it? Nathan Foults of mommy’s best games. Foults hates it so much in fact that he’s created an indie game mocking the new update.

Game Type, available now for 80 MS points starts off with users having to find the game through a satirical version of the new dash; complete with obtrusive ads. Once you fin the game, it’s a side scrolling shooter where the content of the ads has come to life. Yep. Really. The best part? The main character is the “hoodie girl” Microsoft has chosen as the logo for the games section of the new dashboard.

Like most games from the studio,its actually fairly good, and for 80 MS points..you really can’t go wrong.

After years of being in a public beta, Minecraft for PC is finally out, so what does MineCon turn its attention to? The Xbox Live arcade version of the game set to hit…soon..ish. Take a look at the trailer for the game, outlining some of the new features.

Before starting this game up, I really wasn’t sure what to expect. The cover suggests playing a fantasy hero who feels compelled to slaughter orcs for various,story-driven reasons. Apparently I was over-analyzing this. The game is about one thing: killing orcs. OK, so there is a little more to it than that, but essentially, they must die. It’s basically a Tower-Defense game… in the third person. So, instead of a top-down, overall view of the map, you play as a silly man who makes off-handed comments to himself about the situation, not unlike my buddy Drake from Uncharted. There is a story in this game, somewhere. But your main concern? Just kill those darn orcs.

Each level begins with some down time where you get to select the kinds of weapons/ traps you will be using this level and then laying them out. Once you hit select, you “unleash the horde.” They come in waves, and as the levels progress, there are different kinds of orcs making each level harder and harder. Not to mention, the maps get more complicated. For the most part, it’s just you defending the castle, so you do a lot of running. The thing I loved about this game was how it plays like a Tower-Defense, but there are times where you have to get out a melee weapon and start hacking and slashing. The animation on the characters is excellent and the comments from our hero and the orcs are hysterical. Each level is different enough to make it challenging and keep it interesting.

That said, the game is not without flaws. Each level you beat unlocks new traps, but you really don’t get a lot of new weapons (ranged or melee). Which is a big part of the game since it’s played in third-person. I get the feeling that the developers underestimated the ability of the player in combat. There is plenty of room for strategy where you can just sit back and watch the blood spill, but sometimes it’s fun to jump into the fray as well. There is also a system to purchase upgrades, but it’s a bit too hard to accrue the currency required to purchase upgrades for traps. Also, there aren’t enough options to upgrade your handheld weapons, another disappointment.

The Blast Factor: When it’s all said and done, though, it’s a really entertaining game. I loved the challenges on each map (some are really tough). The game wasn’t too easy, but it wasn’t impossible either. Not to mention, when you beat a map, our hero does a little jig, which brings me a silly amount of satisfaction. For 1200 Microsoft Points, I would say it’s worth it for seasoned Tower-Defense players and casual ones alike

EA and Klei Entertainment announced that they’re developing a sequel to Xbox Live indie darling Shank for release next year; but they’d rather you not call it a sequel.

“We didn’t make another Shank,” Jamie Cheng, CEO of Klei said, “we completely ripped the game apart and reconstructed it with better controls and visuals.”

According to Cheng, the studio has listened to fan feedback regarding the original title, and developed a better game, including better visuals, controls and yes — more co-op.

Shank 2 is expected to be released sometime in early 2012.

Aged over a decade since its releases in arcades as well as on the Sega Saturn, Radiant Silvergun’s high definition re-release on Xbox Live Arcade still yields as a frustrating and impossible, yet addicting and challenging “shoot em up” game.

Admittedly, I had never played Radiant Silvergun until trying the re-release on the Xbox Live Arcade, so I had no idea what to expect. I assumed it to be something like an amped up version of Galaga, but I was severely wrong.

The game is definitely not for everyone, and that’s made evidently clear right off the bat.

Starting with weapons that you will stick with throughout the duration of their gaming experience, Silvergun’s story mode drops your ship off in the middle of battle. Enemies all shapes and sizes start flying in weaves and circles, shooting various artillery, hoping to blow you to smithereens. There is no training, and players hit the ground running, scrabbling with the multiple weapons they are equipped with.

The player’s ship is small, but stacked with a healthy variety of goodies to destroy enemies, regardless of their sometimes goliath size. The idea is that each weapon should be used to strategically dispose of specific enemies, and when it comes to boss battles, specific parts of your enemies. The more pieces of bosses you destroy, the larger the bonus is at the end of each stage.

Equipped with a Vulcan gun, as well as a homing laser, a lock-on scanner, diagonal missiles, and a sword, players need to utilize each in different scenarios. Knowing which weapons will be the most useful against which enemies is the goal. Sometimes the homing laser may not be able to hit weak spots on a boss’s body, so the side missiles that leave behind explosions are the route to go. Sometimes a player’s Vulcan gun may be so overpowering all they need to do is just hold down the “A” button and lay waste to everything that crosses through their barrage of death. Each plays a special role in surviving the chaos that ensues through the duration of every stage.

To be completely honest, the word “chaos” may be an understatement.

One hit from any of the enemies’ projectiles will end a player’s life, reducing the life count in the upper left corner of the screen.

And this will happen. A lot.

Ten minutes in I wanted to throw my controller through the television and call it a day due to the massive frustration and tediousness of the levels. But sticking with Silvergun is where the rewards come in. As aggravating as it is to lose all of your ships in just the first phases of level one, the arsenal you use upgrades as you play and, in story mode, continues to level up regardless of death and continues. Your Vulcan gun may be at level five when you run out of lives, but when you save and continue (and begrudgingly start on the very first stage again), the Vulcan gun will still be level five, making play-through more manageable each time. With no power ups or helpful add-ons, players must truly rely on their skills and persistence to level up each weapon. The downside is eventually the first stage becomes a chore as players eagerly (or angrily) grind to pick up where they left off with stronger weapons than before. The repetition can be a bit much. I always found myself yearning for a save function, but only the progress of your weapon upgrades are noted.

Radiant Silvergun is for the determined and strong-willed. Instant gratification gamers need not play, because they will find none here. Only the most patient players will be able to muster through the chaos of weapons that, on occasion, will cover the entire playable screen. And sometimes that won’t even be enough. You’ll grit your teeth. You’ll yell. You’ll probably even contemplate destroying your Xbox. Persistence is the only way to method getting through the story mode, as boss battle after boss battle continuously attempts to beat down players (both in the game and emotionally).

Memorization is key. Players will begin to learn stages due to the amount of times they must be replayed. Silvergun forces players back to stage one with every “game over,” which can leave people zoned out and mindless in front of their televisions for hours just in attempts to get back to where they were prior.

The game offers two modes that players can pick from, “Arcade” and “Story.” Personally, the story mode is a lot more fun, despite the attempt at a story. The arcade mode has different options, however, where players may skip to different stages after they get through stage one. There is no choice in “Story” mode.

The story itself is translated into English subtitles, but still wildly confusing and overall pointless. Subtitles come onto the screen during game play, which makes it impossible to read in attempts to survive the onslaught of enemy fire. In the end, it just becomes annoying. I disregarded trying to understand the reason I was blowing up enemy ships and just went with it, mowing down anything in my path.

Radiant Silvergun offers a multiplayer option as well, which I found, if anything, incredibly amusing. Playing with a friend, we suffered the wrath of Silvergun together, dying left and right, yelling and laughing all the way. Eventually we became numb to defeat and kept plugging away. Playing with a friend definitely eases the pain and aggravation, that’s for sure. Eventually, we got in sync with one another and began covering specific sides of the screen, knowing what to expect and leveling up our weapons, making the game that much better.

It’s clear this is a videogame from a different time, which may say something about present day gaming altogether. It brings up the issue that some games are just too sugarcoated, holding gamers’ hands too long, leading them through things they are perfectly capable of doing on their own. It was a cruel awakening that Silvergun gave me, but I found I quite enjoyed the challenge. Some games are just too easy. Radiant Silvergun loudly boasts back that it refuses to be lumped into such a category. There’s a fine line between challenging and impossible, and Silvergun rides that line perfectly. After my initial shock, my comprehension of this fact led to addiction.

Yes, I still have trouble with the game even on the “very easy” setting (the “very hard” setting is really just another way of saying “yeah, right”), but that’s the point. Silvergun is a game for those who can grind and persevere. I’m a gamer that refuses to back down and this is a game that refuses to give in. I’m sure the game is beatable, but I don’t know if I will ever get to that point. We’ll just have to see as my Vulcan gun and homing lasers get stronger and stronger with each attempt.

The Blast Factor: Radiant Silvergun has shattered my hopes and dreams over and over, but for some reason, I keep coming back for more. And it may be twisted, but I kind of like the close-to-impossible challenge. It’s one of the best arcade shooters of its kind, pushing players to really “want it,” so to speak. The re-release got a nice makeover in HD, making the madness on screen look even better. The multiplayer is just an extra treat so friends can suffer along with you. The grinding can get tedious, however, and one mistake can set players back, which can be too much on occasion. If players truly want to test their ambition and persistence, Radiant Silvergun is worth purchasing off of Xbox Live Arcade. If you’re a gamer that needs instant success, then you may want to drop some quarters at the arcade on it instead of making the long-term buy.

You're probably not even reading this.

You know Megan Fox. Actress, model, woman of your dreams? You know the one who starred in the first two Transformers movies? The one you’ve mocked for her Gamertag on Xbox Live?

Wait..what?

Yep, if you’ve been on Halo: Reach lately and played online against a girl with a strange gamertag, you may have made fun of one of the hottest actresses in America.

“I have Halo: Reach, but I am playing online. I don’t really play in story mode anymore,” the actress confessed to Collider.

Though Fox didn’t say exactly what her gamertag was for obvious reasons, she did say that it’s the main reason gamers — mainly men make fun of her. “”Xbox Live players have no idea. They make fun of my gamertag because it is funny, and they are all a bunch of guys and it is clear that I am a girl so they make fun of my name, and they have no idea they are making fun of me,” she added.

It just goes to show you, be nice online kids — you could be making a friend of a supermodel/actress/robot fighter

Based on the Comedy Central animated series created by Devin Clark, Ugly Americans Apocolypsegeddon is a multiplayer twin-stick  shooter, allowing up to four people to tangle with the hordes of the undead and demonic that are attempting to bring about the end of the world. Players can choose one of four protagonists from the show, Mark (the human), Leonard (a drunk wizard), Callie (a demon girl), or Grimes (a cop). Each character has their own special abilities, and can level up a list of attributes and gain access to thirty different weapons.

The end of days is coming to New York City and its up to you to put a stop to it… again. Ugly Americans progresses smoothly from an opening cutscene to set the mood, straight into the first chapter of your journey.The flow of the game works relatively well, setting the chapter up, playing through a level and ending with a boss fight. Each boss fight demands that the player figure out the bosses patterns and attacks, but most of the fights can be won by simply circling around the level and shooting. With a top-down viewpoint, gamers move their way through a variety of levels ranging from a side-scrolling cityscape to a enclosed club setting with a giant cross-dressing demon named Bethany charging after you and blasting your characters with techno music.

The gameplay itself is pretty standard; move your character with the left analog stick, shoot with the right, release a special attack with the right bumper. The game is easy to learn and quick to master, but unfortunately, the easy to learn, repetitive style of play is also easy to get bored with, even with the shifting levels and interesting looking bosses to contend with. Each of the playable characters all eventually end up feeling the same, and with the exception of their special attack essentially don’t differentiate from one another. The attributes and stats that come with leveling up are also pretty standard (strength, health points, agility, etc). Throughout the levels, players can also pick up items to help boost these stats such as Demon Babies that give you a permanent buff while you’re carrying them. The weapons, while very intriguing and humorous, are all very similar. High fire rate weapons equal less damage, while slow firing weapons do more, so essentially the only weapons that need to be used are the heavy hitters, as the majority of the fights in the game consist of players trying to knock down a giant health bar while circling the enemy.

The Blast Factor: Ugly Americans is a game that clearly caters to fans of the show. With a script written by the creator, the game falls a little flat on those looking for an interesting twin-stick shooter to have fun with. The linear feel of the levels leading up to the eventuality of a boss fight, players might very well feel a sense of disappointment or perhaps even boredom as they progress through the game. The multiplayer aspect is one of the redeeming qualities of the game, but it is difficult to actually get a four player matchup as so few people are playing it.

What’s with all the gaming cat fights latelty ammirite? The latest hair pulling and name calling comes from Sony Computer Entertainment America’s Rob Dyer, senior VP of publisher relations, who’s taking a shot at rival Microsoft and its policies that require an Xbox Live Arcade game to be released on the platform first, before being sold anywhere else — like the PlayStation Network. Specifically, he’s targeting Microsoft’s European VP of interactive entertainment Chris Lewis who recently defended the company’s policy.

“I think what Chris and the other representatives at Microsoft are doing is protecting an inferior technology,” Dyer told IndustryGamers. “I think they want to dumb it down and keep it as pedestrian as possible so that if you want to do anything for Blu-ray, or you have extra content above 9GB, or you want to do anything of that nature, you’d better sure as heck remember that Microsoft can’t handle that.”

Dyer went on to say that Microsoft’s policies are hurting not only their relationship with the developers, but the consumer as well. “So potentially any time we’ve gone out and negotiated exclusive content of things that we’ve announced at things like DPS or E3, publishers are getting the living crap kicked out of them by Microsoft because they are doing something for the consumer that is better on our platform than it might be perceived on theirs. So from a creativity standpoint and what we are doing to try to make it better for the consumer, our view is Microsoft’s doing everything they can to eliminate that because they have an inferior technology.”

So you’ve somehow scored a copy of Gears of War 3 early and you want to tell the world about it. Be careful, Epic is watching you. In fact, Epic is ready to bring the ban hammer down on those caught posting spoiler videos.

“We’re extremely diligent about getting that stuff taken down and issued a call to fans to not perpetuate it… and just keeping track of those who do,” said Rod Fergusson, Executive Producer. “I don’t think everybody’s aware of the potential repercussions of those types of actions.We have a banning system built into our stuff so we can go in and identify certain people. Some people aren’t smart about what they do. They’ll be disappointed on 20th September when they can’t get in and can’t play. They may be banned”

Kids, don’t steal. And if you do steal, don’t spoil. Let’s all be cool.

EA Sports announced today that it will offer a premium subscription service, dubbed EA Sports Season Pass for all of the publisher’s major sports franchises. The Season Pass program will kick off this year with Madden for $25 as well as NHL and FIFA later this year, with Tiger Woods PGA Tour and NCAA Football next year.

The biggest draw of the pass is the ability to download a full  digital version of the latest EA Sports titles a full three days before they release to the public. Here’s the catch though, after those three days, the digital copy becomes void, and you’ll still have to head to the store and pick up a full retail version of the title (though save versions from the digital version will work with the physical versions).

The Season Pass also gives those who buy it a 20% discount on DLC for EA Sports titles, but the discount is very selective over what it covers.  First, it doesn’t cover DLC for previously released games; meaning that if you buy it for Madden, you won’t be able to use it on NCAA Football 2012, which was just released a month ago. Also, the pass is sold on a per console basis, so you won’t be able to use it on multiple systems to cover multiple games. The discount also doesn’t work with the Online Pass service, which is required for gamers to play online, but free with new copies of its games.

So, will you be buying the pass from EA?

I really liked L.A. Noire, and more of it is never a bad thing, especially when it comes this quick.

Starting today, players will be able to download a number of add-ons for the game. “The Naked City” DLC case ($4.00 for PSN/320 Microsoft Points), “A Slip of The Tongue” DLC case ($4.00/320 Microsoft Points), Broderick Detective Suit and Gun ($1.00/80 Microsoft Points), Sharpshooter Detective Suit and Gun ($1.00/80 Microsoft Points), The Badge Pursuit Challenge ($2.00/160 Microsoft Points), and Chicago Piano Machine Gun (free community unlock) are all available.

On June 21st, The “Nicholson Electroplating Disaster” DLC will launch, with “Reefer Madness” hitting on July 12.

“With its blend of real crime influences and noir atmosphere, L.A. Noire contains boundless potential for new stories and new cases,” said Sam Houser, founder of Rockstar Games, in an official press release received by Blast. “The four new cases are strong standalone stories that sit perfectly alongside the main game.”

Don’t want to pay for each piece of DLC separately? The Rockstar Pass, which costs only $10 is now available and allows users to pick up all of the DLC as it becomes available; netting you a 50% savings. After this week, the pass goes up to $12.

Go get ‘em detective.

E3 2011 is under two weeks away, and it’s shaping up to be one hell of a show. As usual, there’s a ton of rumors circulating around just what’s going to be revealed June 7-9 in Los Angeles. This week, we’ll be bringing you our predictions of just what we’re going to see. Here’s our Microsoft predictions, be sure to check out our Nintendo predictions.

Love it or hate it, Microsoft was all about Kinect at last year’s E3, and don’t expect this year to be any different. This year is going to be critical for Kinect, and expect Microsoft to bring the goods, albeit different than last year. Expect a lot of new game reveals,  but this time they won’t all be the casual gamer stuff we saw last year. Expect full reveals for the now Kinect enabled Ghost Recon: Future Solider, and finally the Kinect Gears of War title we’ve been talking about for the last year. We should also see reveals for the Suda 51 Kinect title Codename D. There’s also even talk of a Crimson Skies Kinect title.

Oh, but that doesn’t mean we won’t get those casual gamer target titles. A big rumor suggests that we’ll see a title called Kinect Me and one called Kinect Fun Lab. What exactly are they? We don’t know, but we’re hearing they’re Microsoft’s response to the plethora of hacks that have been hitting the device, fun little games allow you to be creative with the world around you. Just how many new Kinect games will we see? I’m going t go with 10.

E3 2011 will bring more information on Avatar Kinect

It won’t just be new games we hear about for Kinect, we’ll also finally hear about the updates software that’s going to bring improved tracking and new features to the peripheral. We’ll also see more information on Avatar Kinect, the cool chat function announced earlier this year.

Microsoft’s press event won’t be all about Kinect though, as we’ll see a slew of new titles and information on highly anticipated titles. Expect new info on Gears of War 3 as well as the new Xbox Live Alan Wake title. Expect one or two major announcements about major games coming to Xbox Live as well. Killer Instinct maybe?

My gut tells me that either Sony or Microsoft will be showing off new Modern Warfare 3 gameplay at their event, and given Microsoft’s DLC deal, and the fact that they showed Black Ops last year, expect a reveal here.

Then there’s the game that brought Microsoft to the dance in the first place. Halo. This year marks the tenth anniversary of the release of the original Halo: Combat Evolved, and I’d be very surprised if we didn’t see the long rumored HD remake. I don’t think we’ll see brand new Halo game just yet.

One of the major rumors for Microsoft’s press conference is that they’ll be unveiling 3D technology for the Xbox. While it’s not too far fetched, I don’t see it happening. Microsoft has been strong in their convictions against 3D and I don’t expect much to change.

What do you expect to see from Microsoft at this year’s E3? Let us know in the comments below and be sure to keep with Blast during this year’s E3, as we’ll be live blogging the press conferences and giving you our hands on impressions of the latest games and info.

Check back later this week for our predictions for Sony!

What’s better than one Batman? Try a bunch of different Bat-men. Such is the hope of Monolith Productions, who unveiled Gotham City Impostors, a new multiplayer game featuring the caped crusader set to hit PC, PSN and Xbox Live.

Players take the side of either the Batz, modeled after Gotham’s Dark Knight, or the Jokerz — guess who they’re modeled after. Since the game is multiplayer only, there’s no huge Arkham Asylum story, but there is a bit of one tying everything together; it turns out a group of concerned citizens have put on a Batman cowl because they’re sick of the Joker and his minnions.

The game is described as being somewhat like Team Fortress 2, with quick matches and easy to pick up and play controls.

No date or price has been announced for the game as of yet, but expect to see more at E3 in June.

John Romero is making a Call of Duty map. It’ll have zombies.  That’s not even the coolest part.

You’ll be able to play as characters from Machete, The Walking Dead, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and A Nightmare on Elm Street. No, really.

Check out the official Xbox.com preview for the new map below, which hits the system on May 3, and PSN (if it ever comes up) and PC sometime this year.

Tim Schaefer calls his next game ”extremely, extremely manly” — and no, it’s not Once Upon a Monster.

Trenched, Double Fine’s latest downloadable title was unveiled during last night’s Game Developer’s Choice Awards ceremony during GDC in San Francisco.

Giant robots. Giant Guns and Double Fine? I’m in. Check out the official trailer below.

Here’s your first look at Atari’s upcoming downloadable Ghostbusters title Sanctum of Slime. The game will hit PSN, Xbox Live and PSN in Spring of 2011 and casts players in the role of a rookie Ghostbuster hired by the team from the original film to help prevent a paranormal tragedy. Wait, something about that feels so familiar.

Oh well, check out the never before released trailer and screens below.

According to Larry ” Major Nelson” Hyrb’s latest update, Alan Wake is coming to Xbox Live’s Games on Demand service on November 23rd.

Though no concrete pricing information was given, it’s expected that the digital download of the version will be available for a cheap $19.99, which may entice gamers who were hesitant to pick up the title at full retail price.

The timing of Alan Wake’s Games on Demand service is an interesting one, as most titles hit the digital download scene a year after release or later — Wake was released only six months ago.

Console owners, prepare to become addicted.

This week, at the Social Gaming Summit in London, Rovio CEO Peter Vesterbacka confirmed that console versions of the addictive puzzler Angry Birds, would be released in the next year.

Rovio and publishing partners EA and Chllingo and hoping to follow in the footsteps of PopCap and Plants VS Zombies, which made the transition to console earlier this year, and will be debuting on the Nintendo DS later this year.

Vesterbacka also shot down rumors of an Angry Birds sequel, but did mention that they’ve played with the idea of doing a spin-off title that exlores the game’s story from the pig’s point of view.

5th Cell, the developers of the highly acclaimed Nintendo DS puzzle series Scribblenauts has been teasing an upcoming Xbox Live Project for a while now, today, they officially announced Hybrid to the world.

Hyrbid, which is a first person shooter built with source tasks players with joining up with one of two waring factions — the Palladins or the Variants. Reportedly,one of the factions will feature acrobatic gameplay, while the other is good at stealth.

Not much is known about the title, but stick with Blast for more information as it becomes available.

Halo Reach has been on store shelves for just over a month — but the game’s diehard community has spent the equivalent of 16,455 years playing Bungie’s final Halo game. I’m going to let that sink in. over 16,000 years…in a month.

The numbers come from Bungie’s latest weekly update, which also shares a few other terrifying stats:

-784 million player-games have been played (each game is counted once per player)
-544 billion in-game credits have been earned
-about 4 million screenshots have been uploaded
-almost 6 million total files have been uploaded

Blast reviewed Halo Reach last month, gave it an A+ and a an Editor’s Choice award.

Konami’s classic X-Men arcade is finally on its way to consoles. The announcement was made at this week’s New York Comic Con and will come packed with new features.

The updated X-Men arcade will feature six player drop-in, drop out support along remastered visuals and the ability to create custom VS matchups.

No release date has been announced for the anticipated port, but it’s expected to hit before this Christmas.

Check out the announcement trailer below!

Microsoft has announced that it has promoted Xbox head Don Mattrick to the role of President of Interactive Entertainment Business after former president Robbie Bach stepped down earlier this year. Mattrick’s new duties will include PC and mobile interactive entertainment as well as his previous duties as Xbox, Xbox Live and Zune head.

“Today’s promotions underscore the strength of Microsoft’s collective leadership team and set us up well to execute against a powerful lineup of products this fall,” said Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.

Since joining the Xbox team in 2007 as the company’s Interactive Entertainment’s Senior Vice President, the Xbox 360′s install base has swelled to 42 million units, with Xbox Live growing to 25 million users.

Along with Mattrick’s move, Kurt Delbeen has been named President of the office division, with Andy Lees becoming the head of the mobile communications business.

“Not only is the team ready to capitalise on major momentum with our existing products like Office, SharePoint and Halo: Reach, but they are simultaneously bringing entirely new experiences to market with Windows Phone 7 and Kinect for Xbox 360.”

Videogames have come along way since the days of Pacman and Atari, but there’s one thing that eludes developerseven today; water. Microsoft and Dark Energy Digital’s newest arcade title Hydrophobia has fixed that problem and has some amazing water physics, even if that’s all it has.

I really wanted to like Hydrophobia, but it’s lack of soul and frustratingly broken elements kept me from doing so. At it’s best, it’s a surreal adventure game that keeps you on interested throughout but most times its a clearly flawed and unimpressive platformer.

Hydrophobia places players in the role of Kate Wilson, a systems engineer on the Queen of the World, a massive luxury liner ocean vessel that has taken the place of cities after the world has fallen into the “great population flood.” All is not well though as a group of terrorists known as the Malthusians have carried out an elaborate terrorist attack on the ship, leaving the once proud vessel in chaos and flames. The only problem is that this really isn’t explained to you early on, and when the game finally gets around to letting you know what’s going on, you find yourself not caring.

There’s also a strangely eerie feeling throughout the game that’s reminiscent of the September 11 attacks. Now, I understand that any game dealing with a terrorist attack is going to have that feeling, but here — it’s a bit overwhelming. As Wilson, you’re left racing around emblazoned wreckage, trying to find a way out as your friends and coworkers are dying around you.

Hydrophobia is filled with some of the most dramatic moments in recent games, and a good portion of that is as a result of the game’s HydroEngine, created exclusively for Hydrophobia. In simplest terms, the engine allows for water to move more realistically than ever before. As you’re racing though the ship, water begins to rush in and rise at a rapid and impressively realistic pace. The best part about the engine is that its completely unscripted which means that it acts differently during each play through depending on the environment.

So far so good right? If only the tense moments weren’t filled with mechanical issues and frustrating shortcuts taken by the developers. Chief among these concerns is the game’s unresponsive and nonsensical control scheme. When a game is built so tightly on edge-of-your-seat moments, the controls can’t lag, but sadly that’s the case throughout most of Hydrophobia. Take for instance a sequence where you’re asked to jump over a fiery balcony to a nearby section of scaffolding; the button combination they ask you to do is unnecessarily complicated and what’s worse, it sent me jumping the wrong way, into the fire.

The game also features a rather annoy pace. Go five feet, cutscene, go five feet…cutscene. Gaming is an interactive activity, and my pet peeve is when you we’re shown these cool sequences, but not allowed to do them. It makes me think — why can’t I do that? Add that to the fact that the game features very dated last gen visuals and you’re in for a a rather uninspired gaming experience.

Hydrophobia could have been a great game, hell — it could have been a great game, but instead, the developers decided to put in overly complex control schemes and frustrating gameplay elements. There’s a ton of awesome games on the Xbox Live Arcade like Limbo, Splosion Man and Trials HD, it just doesn’t make sense to spend your money on such a lackluster experience.

Independent game development studio Zombie-Cow has confirmed that it has axed plans to bring its side-scrollingshooter “Privates” to the Xbox Live Arcade.

Oh, you haven’t heard of Privates?  Here’s a quick summary, you play as a group of mini-soldiers; complete with condom hats as they enter every (yes…every) crevice in the body to combat STDS and other health issues. No, really. Hey, at least it teaches kids about safe-sex.

Since its announcement, the game has always been amidst controversy, as the guidelines for users submitting indie games on Xbox Live include a no sexual content clause.

Still, Zombie-Cow’s Dan Marshall has nothing but positive things to say about the Xbox Live Team. “The guys at Xbox have been amazing," said Marshall. "They’ve been really supportive and helpful throughout, but ultimately have advised that the game wouldn’t pass the Indie Games peer review process, purely due to its inherently sexual nature… It’s a shame, but it’s something we’d always pretty much assumed would happen."

Those who still want to blast Chlamydia a new one can do so via the game’s PC release. It’s just a shame as kids are now going to have to learn about the birds and the bees somewhere else, like you know…TV, Movies, kids at school, cartoons, comic books…

Lost Planet 2 hasn’t even been out a month, and Capcom is already releasing another set of multiplayer maps, early next week. Map Pack #2 will feature the Dockyard Battle and Frozen Wasteland maps, and will be available for download via the PlayStation Store on June 1, and on Xbox Live, Wednesday, June 2.

The Dockyard Battle map drops 16-player multiplayer matches into the overland battleship of Lost Planet 2′s Episode 4. Where as Frozen Wasteland (which I’m admittedly fired up for) will bring back the snowy trenches and imposing tower of the original Lost Planet: Extreme Condition.

Map Pack #2 will be available for $4.99, or 400 Microsoft points.

Anytime a downloadable game for either Xbox Live or the Playstation Store costs more than say, 7 or 8 bucks, I’m immediately skeptical. I know I’m not alone when I say that I’ve been burned too many times by overpriced games that are poorly programmed, and not nearly worth the asking price.

Thankfully, Zeno Clash doesn’t fall into that category of overpriced shit. Available on Xbox Live for 1200MSP ($15), Zeno Clash could best be described as a First-Person Shooter, without a whole lot of “shooting” going on. In other words, it’s an FPS where you mainly attack enemies with “melee style” combat. So, along with being able to obviously punch the various odd looking creatures in the game, you also get to block, dodge, parry and sprint when you have to.

Understandably, you may not think this sound all that entertaining. Hey, Halo it’s not. However, Zeno Clash is worth your downloading dollars.

First off, Zeno Clash has a surprisingly well written and paced Story Mode. You’ll play as Ghat, a tribesman who’s outcast from his village and who then has to fend for himself in the odd world of Zenozoik. I realize that’s a very generic synopsis, but I don’t want to spoil the rest of the story for you. Just know that I felt like every scene in the game was well thought out and at times, surprisingly emotional. Not once was I bored, or did I feel like I was trying to complete it (which took about 6 hours total) just because I hate not finishing a game.

Zeno Clash’s level design and graphics are also some of the best I’ve experienced for a downloadable game on Xbox Live. The game moves smoothly, the characters and unique looking environments are all very well drawn, and I didn’t see many (if at all) rough looking edges, or anything that looked, well, rushed.

Also noteworthy are the impressive voice acting (why can’t I get one of those jobs?) and the well done (but, somewhat generic) soundtrack that fits perfectly with the game.

Bottom line is this, Zeno Clash is totally worth the $15, and even after you tear through the Story Mode like I did, there’s still a few more ways to play the game. There’s the “Zero Rush” mode, which is a “time-attack” style challenge mode where you must ascend/descend a tower or pit with waves of enemies coming at you, and there’s also a Co-Op mode where you get to do the previous mode, but with a much needed partner.

Unfortunately, online co-op doesn’t extend to the Story Mode, which actually would have made sense due to how there’s two main characters during most of the story. But hey, for $15, you can’t have everything.

That said, for the aforementioned $15 Zeno Clash: Ultimate Edition is a solid purchase, and a damn good game. If I had to gripe, for the few weapons available to you in the game, there are some that are way too powerful. Other than that, I recommend that Xbox 360 owners give it a try. I think you’ll be as pleasantly surprised as I was with this cool little title by ACE Team.

Originally scheduled to drop out of service today (May 19) Bungie has extended the life of the Halo: Reach multiplayer Beta until tomorrow (May 20) for unknown reasons.

Extended a day!

Speaking with gaming blog Joystiq, Bungie’s Brian Jarrard revealed the extension.

“Our official plans as of now are to turn off the Reach beta on Thursday, 5/20 at 10AM PDT,” he said.

You’ve earned yourselves an extra day, headhshot-honchos. Go at it while you can!

via Joystiq

Bungie’s final Halo effort, Halo:Reach, has been in multiplayer beta since May 3. In that time, a mere 2.5 weeks, it has managed to overtake Halo 3‘s player count by leaps and bounds.

The Beta’s fast paced train of death comes to a abrupt halt tomorrow, when Microsoft says it will pull the figurative (or literal!) plug on the trial.

In Reach‘s first week alone, over 14 million games were logged and 157 million kills amassed, which equals more than Halo 3 enjoyed in its beta’s lifetime.

Possibly the allure of the beta was found for gamers in its new gametypes; Invasion and Generator Defense. Personally, Generator Defense felt like a buzzkill. I loved the ideal objective, but with only three versus three, it got old and stale very fast. On the other hand, Invasion and Invasion Slayer, are two areas I’ve logged the most time in, simply because Bungie finally went for it and they nailed it, right on the head.

What do you think?

via Destructoid

Despite over a million gamers joining in on the Halo: Reach beta mayhem in its first 24 hours, Activision’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 remained the king of the Xbox Live activity ladder last week.

Xbox Live’s Major Nelson, the man with quite possibly the world’s greatest job, reported Xbox Live usership details this week, noting the Reach beta sitting at the #3 spot, two places behind Modern Warfare 2.

Okay, maybe the third spot is a shade misleading. Halo 3: ODST took home place #2, but  accessing the Reach beta happens through the ODST menu screen.

Xbox 360 Top LIVE Titles — based on Unique Users

1    Modern Warfare 2
2    Halo 3: ODST
3    Halo: Reach Multiplayer Beta
4    Halo 3
5    Call of Duty: WaW
6    FIFA 10
7    Battlefield Bad Co. 2
8    GTA IV
9    Call of Duty 4
10   Gears of War 2
11   UFC Undisputed 2010 Demo
12   Splinter Cell Conviction
13   Left 4 Dead 2
14   Skate 3 Demo
15   Forza Motorsport 3
16   NBA 2K10
17   Game Room
18   Split Second Demo
19   NHL 10
20   Borderlands

I already commented on my feeling about the Beta, what about you? Like it?

From the makers of Time Gentlemen, Please! comes Privates, the first game set in a vagina, arriving for Xbox 360 and PC later this year.

The game, a cartoonish, mini-title, set inside the butt and vaginal glands, is best described by its maker Zombie Cow Studios as a game  “in which you lead a teeny-tiny gang of condom-hatted marines as they delve into peoples’ vaginas and bottoms and blast away at all manner of oozy, shouty monsters.”

Look for the game later this year on both PC and Xbox 360. For now, stare at these odd screenshots, depicting the mayhem to be had in Privates.

Read up more on the project at the game’s official page (if you want).

When the clock strikes midnight this evening, Microsoft will pull the plug for original Xbox Live support, bringing an abrupt end to the “Halo 2″ era and anything else gamers play.

Halo 2

In February, Microsoft said it planned to cut LIVE support for original Xbox games and that day is fast approaching, like less than 24 hours.

“We’ll continue to evolve the service with features and experiences that harness the full power of Xbox 360,” Xbox Live general manager Marc Whitten said in the February statement announcing the change. “To reach our aspiration, we need to make changes to the service that are incompatible with our original Xbox V1 games.”

Halo developer Bungie is planning an extravagant going away party for “Halo 2″ and you can read about the happenings here.

The plug gets pulled at exactly midnight Pacific time, so if you desire one last hoorah, hurry up!

In a recent interview with G4, Harmonix GDRB lead, Chris Foster, confirmed that the ‘American Idiot’ album will appear complete in the retail release of the title. The game comes with 47 tracks, most of which remain unannounced outside of the content from American Idiot.

The UK retailer Play.com indicates that ‘Dookie’ will appear in its entirety on the retail disc as well. This has yet to be confirmed, but more official news will surely pour out in the coming weeks as Green Day Rock Band is set to release June 8th…

Here’s a quick way to know you’re old in regards to the world of video games:

You know what a “Vectrex” is and you’ve actually bid on one on Ebay.

Well, yours truly IS old, and HAS bid on a Vectrex, and thankfully I didn’t end up winning one, because that would have been horrible.

That’s because the “retro, vector-style graphics” of a Vectrex (and now, Stick ‘Em Up) are awful, brightly colored stick like figures and shapes.

Look, I know that Stick ‘Em Up is a cheap indie game, but in 2010 not even the stoniest stoner gamer should put up with these kinds of graphics. Especially after being spoiled in recent years with the likes of Modern Warfare and say, Heavy Rain. (Oooh that Madison. SO hot!)

OK, so “retro, vector-style graphics” aside, is Stick ‘Em Up at least fun to play?

Well, um… no.

If this is a quality indie game, count me out. (In the game’s defense, it currently has a 3.5 star rating.) See, not only are the visuals “retro” but so is gameplay. Stick ‘em up is basically running and shooting your way through each level (there’s 12! At 3.99, that’s just .33 cents a level! W00T!) until you reach the end and move on to the next one.

Yup.

That’s it.

Just your run of the mill, “run n’ gun” platform shooter, with ancient 2d graphics.

I mean, I knew going in that this game wasn’t going to be the next BioShock, but when you’re lacking in every other basic gaming department, I’d figure the developers could have at least strung together SOME lame plot.

The thing about most of the quality “retro style” games, is that they took a concept from the past, and improved on what made the original work.

An obvious example of a game that got this concept right, is Geometry Wars. Unfortunately, Stick ‘Em Up looks and feels like some kid’s first programming project. Now, I realize that’s a bit harsh, but what can I say?

I want to play a kid’s first programming project about as much as I want to be an English teacher being forced to read some slacker teen’s attempt at literature.

Stick ‘Em Up, also offers co-op and local multiplayer, but I’ll be honest here — I didn’t try either while I gave this game a go, due to the fact that anyone I pinged didn’t want to play the game, and nobody was willing to come over to my apartment to play me. I don’t blame them.

In closing, Stick ‘em up is a steaming pile that’s too short, with horrendous a.i., iffy controls (have I mentioned you can’t even duck?!) and annoying, “vector-style graphics” that torture your retinas after about ten minutes.

About the only upside that this game has, is that the “helicopter” (and I use that term loosely) that you get to pilot, sort of looks like the Death Star with rotors.

If that’s enough to make you want to part with 240 MS points, you’re a better (or richer!) person than I am.

Microsoft wants you to use its search engine Bing and is handing free Xbox Live Avatar t-shirts to help promote it.

All you have to do is search the magic phrase into the Bing search engine and voila, your free codes.

I don’t want mine, so here you go.

• • Male Shirt: PHT9P-KXR4Y-BB6BY-VFMPD-THT4T
• • Female Shirt: VFH6P-9FJKK-KKP9G-H4DRH-WTCFM

I’ve been using  Bing more and more recently, but Google will remain king, at least in my eyes.

Splinter Cell: Conviction is a game many thought they’d never play. With its rampant delays and total campaign overhaul, fans became disenchanted. But with the game penciled in for a April 13 release, the end of the tunnel is nearly in sight.

But it gets better.

A demo for the title (involving the bathroom scene below) arrives exclusively on Xbox Live this Thursday, March 18. And if it’s anything like the trailer, might have to call out sick April 13 to play it all day.

Sh*t is literally going to hit the fan

If Saint Patrick’s Day was nice to you and your hangover isn’t too overbearing, check out the demo, I know I will.